A creditor or the trustee may ask the bankruptcy courts to revoke your discharge on the ground of fraud. The complaint must be filed within one year of your discharge. The creditor or trustee must show that you obtained violated the law and to obtain your discharge. Usually, the revocation request must be filed within one year of the discharge order but in a Chapter 7 case were the allegation is that you did not comply with court orders or failed to tell trustee about property that should have been included in the bankruptcy the request can be filed within one year of the closing date of the case. The court will hear the evidence and decide if the allegations are valid and whether to revoke the discharge. If the court finds that you did obtain by violating the law then it will revoke the discharge. One your discharge is revoked it as though you never filed bankruptcy and you will owe all the debts that were discharged in the bankruptcy. You should, however, receive credit for the portion of the debts that were paid through the bankruptcy.
The following are grounds for revoking your Chapter 7 discharge:
*Under the bankruptcy law, the U.S. Trustee’s office randomly audits a small number of bankruptcy cases. If during the course of this audit it is determined that you materially misrepresented facts or failed to turn over all necessary documents this is grounds for revoking your discharge.
- You did not inform or turn over assets to the trustee that you were obliged to under the bankruptcy law.
- You refused to comply with bankruptcy court orders.
- You committed fraud in obtaining your discharge and the fraudulent was not discovered by the party requesting your discharged be revoked until after your discharge was granted.
In a Chapter 13 case your discharge can be revoked if you committed fraud in obtaining your discharge and the fraud was not discovered until after the discharge.
In a Chapter 13 case, it is possible that the trustee or your creditors will seek to revoke the confirmation of your Chapter 13 plan. This must be done within 180 days of the confirmation of your plan. The plan can only be revoked if there is evidence that you obtained your plan confirmation by fraud.
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Bankruptcy is complex and many answers depend upon your specific situation. If you still have questions you can schedule a free consultation with a bankruptcy attorney.
